DSG - 7 speed problems

hi there,
im intrested in buying the new superb - 2010 model.
recently i found out about the poor quality of dsg gears that were put in 2006-2009 volkswagen cars and skodas,
my question is:
Are there any 2009 superb owners here who can confirm that this problems apply the new 7 speed DSG gearbox?
anyone here had problems with this gearbox, or the 6 speed ever?

The 7 speeds are fine. I've never encountered a problem with it. I've got a customer who has got a TSi DSG Superb and he does a lot of miles, 20k since March and he hasn't had anything wrong with his gearbox.

The 7 speeds are fine. I've never encountered a problem with it. I've got a customer who has got a TSi DSG Superb and he does a lot of miles, 20k since March and he hasn't had anything wrong with his gearbox.

james, your comment is trulely helpfull..so the problems regarding the old 6 speed are completely solved? i can buy this magnificent car in peace?

I've never experienced a problem with any of the DSG gearboxes wet or dry clutches. Apart from when they very first came out I have one Octavia which wouldn't go into drive. The techs replaced some kind of switch in the gear selector and it sorted everything out. Other than that DSG is a pretty good design, it works well enough for Bugatti and Porsche!

hi there,im intrested in buying the new superb - 2010 model.recently i found out about the poor quality of dsg gears that were put in 2006-2009 volkswagen cars and skodas,my question is:Are there any 2009 superb owners here who can confirm that this problems apply the new 7 speed DSG gearbox?anyone here had problems with this gearbox, or the 6 speed ever?

comments will be much appreciated!!

I had that 7-speed DSG, and at 90 000 km, they had to change the mechatronic. But, the new mechatronic would work with the old gearbox, they tried and tried, and finally, after one week, they had to change the whole gearbox, too. And there are many users on skoda/vw-formus that have had problems with DSG:s, so maybe there is something to be concerned about....who knows.

I had that 7-speed DSG, and at 90 000 km, they had to change the mechatronic. But, the new mechatronic would work with the old gearbox, they tried and tried, and finally, after one week, they had to change the whole gearbox, too. And there are many users on skoda/vw-formus that have had problems with DSG:s, so maybe there is something to be concerned about....who knows.

that's exactly what im concerned about.. and the repairs of this gearbox are very expensive in my country..plus, another important detail is that im buying this car for my dad, a handicap, so i dont want him to start running around the auto shops trying to fix it..

I actually just saw the chap with the TSi Superb I mentioned earlier who does a lot of miles, he popped in to get his new spare wheel for his car. He filled up at Junction 21 and got to Epsom which is Junction 8 of the M25 and averaged 48.5mpg, he had to show me as I wouldn't believe him! Very impressive!!

that's exactly what im concerned about.. and the repairs of this gearbox are very expensive in my country..plus, another important detail is that im buying this car for my dad, a handicap, so i dont want him to start running around the auto shops trying to fix it..

Repairing automatic is expensive, no matter what kind on transmission we are talking about. The only way to be sure that there are no suprises, is to buy a new car, with a warranty. Of course, shops are obliged to give some kind of warranty also to used cars, at least here where I live....like I said, many people say that there are problems, and those stories are quite easy to find.....google....

But, I don`t think that there is a type of automatic, that doesn`t have any problems ever.....

I've got the 7-spd box, albeit on a Octavia, I've had no problems as yet & it's done just under 3k, so it's not really run in yet.

I'll admit that I did have some reservations about having a DSG boxed car, however now I've got it, I would have to think long & hard about going back to a manual.

Like anything it WILL eventually go wrong, either due to wear & tear (age), mechanical or electronics failure, but I think that it's a chance that you take with a DSG boxed car, what you also need to think is that a manual car also has every chance to go kaput as well.

Repairing automatic is expensive, no matter what kind on transmission we are talking about. The only way to be sure that there are no suprises, is to buy a new car, with a warranty. Of course, shops are obliged to give some kind of warranty also to used cars, at least here where I live....like I said, many people say that there are problems, and those stories are quite easy to find.....google....

But, I don`t think that there is a type of automatic, that doesn`t have any problems ever.....

ofc there isnt..every car model has problems, its just that when you hear too many stories about the 6 speed dsg, and they are easy to find at google. hell, even my cousin got a defective passat back then..i just want to be calm with this purchase and find out whether these problems are solved in the 7 speed version or not..that's all

I have 7spd 1.8tsi since late 2009 and it is fantastic. No problems at all. Before that I had a 6spd DSG in an audi from 2005 to 2009. It was completely uneventful - as it should be. I don't think I would ever buy another non-DSG car. They feel so clumsy to drive now!

DSG transmissions, particularly the 7-speed, are extremely complex and sit at the cutting-edge of transmission design. This gearbox is very considerably more complex than the engine which drives it and much more complex than a traditional stepped-ratio automatic transmission.
Any mechanical system will wear suffer faults in due course - that's a simple fact - so sooner or later it will fail. The problem with DSG's is the cost and availability of spare parts and dearth of expertise to repair them. There are very few people outside of VAG dealerships who will contemplate repairing them, and even the dealers are only able to undertake limited repairs (e.g. switches, sensors, mechatronic unit). Anything major will require a factory-rebuilt transmission to be fitted.

Ok I'll try to help here, I have a 6 speed in a Passat mated to a 2.0 PD.

I've only had it 3 weeks now, but I will write down a summary for you in a minute, but first consider this.

A manual box to fix is around Â£1k, you will also need a DMF and clutch, these come out at Â£900 indy and Â£1400 VAG.

A normal auto is around 2k to recon, and they don't usually last much more than 25k afterwards unless it was a factory recon built to exact specs, rather than a guy with a wrench doing it.

A DSG is around Â£1500 for the mech unit to be replaced, and 3k for the box itself.

Now here's where it gets interesting, the DSG and the DPF on these cars mated to PD engines should be considered like a Socket 7 motherboard running an i5 processor and DDR3 triple channel memory, the PD being the motherboard element, both of the other's are add on's to a PD rather than designed for the PD, they are infact most suited to CR engines, i.e developed for CR rather than added to PD.

Actual experience, I find a PD with a DSG is a bit jerky/savage in the first 2 gears, after that it's smooth as, I'm told the CR takes this away and delivers the power evenly, I also suspect a lot of the problems reported with the DSG are infact people who expect a full automatic experience from the DSG, but the two boxes don't work in the same way, an automatic box slushes through the gears wasting energy by the bucket, where the DSG is still a manual box with an electronic left leg, as it changes it's almost the same as a clutch friendly driver changing gear, when pushed it's like changing gear by beating the syncromesh, some DSG boxes give the flash fault on the dash, this is when you do have problems, although most of the ppl showing it on uTube seem to be into launch starting and thrashing the box, something that will break any gearbox tbh.

It's one of those things that you should have a very long test of before you buy, just to be sure it's for you, it's different, it's extremely economic and quick, personally I really like it, and it will be the box of choice in the next ten years, but you have to respect it, and you have to learn it, or it will catch you out. hth.

Alright guys, I'm not in the UK but in India, however since international manufacturers should have the same quality standards across the world, here goes.
I have a new (6 month old actually) Superb 1.8 with the 7 speed DSG. On May 20th the gearbox failed (the car has done 10,000 kms or 6,000 miles). The car was towed to the workshop and its the failure of a part called Mechatronic. I have now been waiting for 8 days - because they ran out of spares at their plant in India and have called for more from the Czech Republic. Apparently a large number of Superbs are facing this problem in India(google it to hear horror stories from various owners). The dealer says it's because of the heat in the country!!! Trust me the temperatures in our cities are nowhere close to the temperatures that should be in the engine bays, so much for Global warming!!! besides Skoda have been selling cars in India for the last 10 years, they should have gotten their heads around the heat. To me it appears to be a case of unreliable part. I think the service levels in the UK are better than what we suffer here so if faced with issues, you should get speedier resolution in case you still decide to go for the car and are unfortunately faced with any problems.

Replacement of the mechatronic unit and clutch unit should cure the DSG problems.Skoda know about this problem and advise that these parts are to be replaced,under warranty of course,alos worth replacing the DSG oil and filter in the process ....

Replacement of the mechatronic unit and clutch unit should cure the DSG problems.Skoda know about this problem and advise that these parts are to be replaced,under warranty of course,alos worth replacing the DSG oil and filter in the process ....

i thought there is no fluids in the 7 speed gearbox..what oil are you talking about??

Alright guys, I'm not in the UK but in India, however since international manufacturers should have the same quality standards across the world, here goes.I have a new (6 month old actually) Superb 1.8 with the 7 speed DSG. On May 20th the gearbox failed (the car has done 10,000 kms or 6,000 miles). The car was towed to the workshop and its the failure of a part called Mechatronic. I have now been waiting for 8 days - because they ran out of spares at their plant in India and have called for more from the Czech Republic. Apparently a large number of Superbs are facing this problem in India(google it to hear horror stories from various owners). The dealer says it's because of the heat in the country!!! Trust me the temperatures in our cities are nowhere close to the temperatures that should be in the engine bays, so much for Global warming!!! besides Skoda have been selling cars in India for the last 10 years, they should have gotten their heads around the heat. To me it appears to be a case of unreliable part. I think the service levels in the UK are better than what we suffer here so if faced with issues, you should get speedier resolution in case you still decide to go for the car and are unfortunately faced with any problems.

I am sharing my experience with you. I had an Octavia vRS at one time with a manual gearbox of course which was absolutely fine for the 2 years I had it for before I changed it. Thanks to that experience, I decided to go for the Superb as it's the most comfy in the back, is loaded with features and is a delight to drive. Don't get me wrong, skoda cars by and large are good, you're getting volkswagen tech at far lower price.This one has the 7 speed DSG- cutting edge, however i am not entirely sure they have perfected it. The dealer who has my car (still) says he has sold 500 of these new ones and only 15-20 have faced this problem... thats 4%, which in my opinion is a big number for a critical part- we are not talking squeaking seats here. Skoda India should have recalled the car for sorting this out but they choose not to, I have sent a complaint to their headquarters as well. A lot of things are cheap in India, cars is definitely not one of them. The on road price of this car is Â£ 35,000 in Mumbai so we are paying a pretty high price. You need to decide for yourself, you can still go a for a Skoda without this gearbox or as I said earlier, go for this one and in case something was to go wrong, it's highly unlikely you will face the apathy in the UK that I've faced here so far. By the way the part arrived at the dealership last night, I am supposed to get the car back this evening(fingers crossed) and will post the outcome.

Ok latest update... The Skoda dealer claims there was an issue with the coding of the mechatronic he received from the factory and it took them all day to sort it out. They think(!!!!) they've solved it but unfortunately the workshop's closed tomorrow so they will test the car and deliver it either on Monday evening or Tuesday. This gearbox is a dream as long as it works fine, once it breaks down, you have a mega problem at hand.